Why classical musicians need a website

What should a website do for you? Are they still useful or necessary?

There is a perception that websites are old school, that all you need now is a Facebook artist page and an Instagram account. You certainly do need those, but in this article I’m going to explain why, as a classical musician looking to gain a following, play more concerts and get the interest of agents and promoters, you most certainly do need a website. And a good one. Plus, owning your groups or your domain name enables you to keep control of and protect your brand.

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All in one place

A website is a one-stop destination, designed with your goals in mind, for people who will want more information about you and your music. A website is accessible to everyone and isn’t reliant on them being engaged with any particular social platform. Social media comes and goes and you are at the mercy of their ever-changing algorithms. Currently, we’re seeing a huge drop in Facebook usage and an increase in Instagram.

So, if you have put all your energy into maintaining your Facebook page alone, you’re going to be losing your share of the audience. You can design your website to make it as easy as possible for people to find the information they need about you, your ensemble, your live dates, recordings and videos, availability and, of course, how to get in touch. Crucially, you can make it tempting for people to opt-in to your database. More about that next.

List Building *marketing tip

Email is still the number one best way to market yourself and keep fans informed and interested. A good email list, managed with a service like Mailchimp, is essential and your website is the ultimate tool to building that list. Let’s say you’ve just played a great concert and you meet people afterwards, people keen to meet you, congratulate you and tell you how much they enjoyed your performance. This is your opportunity to give them a way to support you. You design a high quality flyer, and advertised on it is your website address. Easy to find for them, and the site will be designed to tempt them to leave their email address so they can continue supporting you.

All the hardwork you’ve put into social media should result in people clicking through from their timeline to a site designed to persuade them to give their email address. It’s the ultimate way to convert all your hard work into a solid fan base.

“Your website is now your EPK (electronic press kit) and is where you keep all your portraits, videos, engagements, biography and contact details in one convenient place.”

How you appear on Google

Having a decent website means you can take control of each engine’s results. Correctly designed and maintained, your website should be able to be the top result when someone Googles you and you can control what those results show and summarise. If you imagine someone has heard about you, be they an individual wanting you for an event, a promotor or an agent, they will want to be able to Google you and find the information they need without negotiating a social media timeline. No-one in a professional capacity wants to faff with that.

Agents & Promotors

Agents and promotors are more likely to pay attention to an artist with a professional website. It shows you’re in it for the long haul, that you’re reliable and a pro. Your website is now your EPK (electronic press kit) and is where you keep all you portraits, videos, engagements, biography and contact details in one convenient place. You can create specific landing pages for professionals, so when you contact them you can direct them to exactly the information you want them to see in one easy click. The key word here is professional, don’t be a hobbyist and use Wix. Get it done properly.

James Cardell-Oliver

Head of projects & partnerships

For James, classical music has been a passion throughout the duration of his extremely long life. From being forced by his parents to play the violin, to rebelling and becoming a pedal steel legend, James merges his love of music and years of creative marketing experience to supercharge the Mill Media Company.

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